Rain
by PurgatoryKabuki
Summary: She stared blankly at the mangled body in front of her. A body... Her body... She brought up a hand and tugged at the broken chain that once connected her to her own body. She was no longer alive. [Set during and after the 1000 year war arc of Bleach. Main pairing: Bya/Ori. Side pairings: Ren/Rukia, Uryu/OC, possible Ichi/Grim and more!] Please R&R! - ON HIATUS
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: Bleach is property of Tite Kubo, not me.

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Prologue

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_Rain..._ She thought as she stared blankly at the mangled body in front of her. A body... _Her_ body... _Huh? What's that sound? … Sirens, someone must have called for help._ As she sat on the wet pavement of the sidewalk, she couldn't bring herself believe that what lay before her in the pouring rain was her body. She brought up a hand and tugged at the broken chain that once connected her to her own body. She was no longer alive.

_Why?_

She stood up slowly, her legs threatening to give out. Something flashed in the corner of her eye. She turned her head and suddenly she saw a shrouded figure standing next to the alleyway not to far from her. She saw the figure's glasses glint again under the street light. _Who is that? Wait... _

"Uryū? Uryū! Wait!" she shouted at the figure but it only made them run away. She had to find out his reason for betraying them, siding with the Quincy over his own friends. "Why Uryū? Why did you leave us?" she was crying now; chasing after the shrouded figure she was sure was Uryū Ishida, the chain making tinkling noises as she went.

_No use. He's gone..._

She stopped running, fell to her knees and started to scream. So many questions and emotions welling up inside her, she didn't know how else to deal with what she felt, the prominent feeling she had was the sense of betrayal. She did feel betrayed by Uryū but she also felt betrayal strongly linked to how she died... That's when she remembered. _Ichigo!_

"My, my. If you don't stop screaming like that, a soul reaper assigned to this area might hear you and think you're starting to transform into a hollow. We don't want that, do we? Orihime."

She immediately stopped screaming and throwing a fit and turned her head around to look behind her. She knew that voice, it could only be... "Urahara? W-what are you doing here?"

She stood up slowly and turned around to get a better look at the man before her. The mischievous shopkeeper was dressed as usual, the fan he always carried with him was in front of his mouth, eyes unreadable, his cane resting in the crook of his arm that held the umbrella which was shielding him from the pouring rain. "Oh stop it, Orihime! You're making me blush with that wandering gaze of yours," Urahara coyly said as he made a show of being embarrassed.

Orihime knew how he was, if she didn't get him to stop playing games now, she would never get anywhere with his man. "Stop fooling around, please. Answer my question, Urahara!"

Urahara immediately returned to his more serious demeanor and nodded. "Fine, fine. No one lets me have fun anymore. Anyways, to answer your question. I got a mysterious phone call 15 minutes ago saying that you had died in a battle against some invading Quincy. So here I am!" he turned more serious, the fan still hiding his mouth making it hard to read his face. "I have a proposition for you, Orihime. You have a few options in your current state."

"Huh?" Orihime murmured, looking down at the chain links dangling from her chest. "Oh, you mean..."

"Yup! Option one, I let you wander around until you get consumed by what ever you were feeling when you were screaming earlier and turn into a hollow, which means I get to kill you." he paused for a moment to let that sink in. "Option two, I perform a konsō on you, you'll lose your memories and go live in the Soul Society where you'll likely never be found by anyone you once knew. Though judging by the power you once retained as a human, you'll develop into a soul reaper eventually... And then there is option three..." he trailed off, his eyes glinting with mischievousness.

Orihime loudly swallowed before murmuring, "Option three...?"

Urahara lowered the fan he had over the lower half of his face, revealing a large, playful grin. "You allow me to make you into a Soul Reaper using the same method I used on Ichigo."

_Ichigo... _The name echoed inside her head and stirred up the large sense of betrayal she felt moments ago. This was her chance to make him pay for what he did to her. Orihime looked straight into Urahara's eyes, all traces of her usual bubbly self gone, "I choose option three."

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R&R! - I think this site is lacking in some Orihime x Byakuya stories. I always think she'd bring out the best in those around her.


	2. Chapter 1

A/N: I've made some adjustments to this chapter since I first posted it. Sorry~

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**Chapter One**

**Placement Test**

* * *

_15 years later..._

Orihime Inoue sat outside the 13th division's barracks under the shade of the trees that surrounded the property, waiting to be summoned for her placement test. She looked up at the leaves that shielded her from the mid morning sun's rays, smiling and softly humming no specific tune to herself. While she was attempting to pass some time, Orihime began to think back to the war.

Yhwach was a terrible man. He was hell bent on the destruction of Soul Reapers, Hollows and even his fellow Quincy. His only goal was to make himself stronger, a true God. His plan was to merge himself with Uryū Ishida, though no one knows why except Uryū. Though once Uryū had briefly mentioned to Orihime during one of his visits that he was special, but he didn't say anything more than that. Luckily Yhwach didn't succeed in his plans, mostly because Uryū wasn't on his side, he was mostly acting on his own accord to stop Yhwach, revealing his true intentions for the war to his subordinates. As the war waged, his own army turned on him, Yhwach went insane and Ichigo took the chance to end his miserable existance. After the war ended, Uryū and the rest of the Quincy pledged allegiance to the Soul Reapers. The Soul Reapers and Quincy agreed to finally make peace and work along side each other to protect the balance between the worlds.

Orihime sighed, thinking about the past made her sorely miss her friends, especially Tatsuki and her Shun Shun Rikka. She willed all her feelings of attachment away. She knew she wouldn't ever see her old powers ever again. She also knew that it was her choice to detach herself from Tatsuki since her death. The only person she kept in contact with was Uryū.

She was brought out of her reverie when she heard footsteps in the soft grass coming her way, she knew who it was immediately. "Hello, Lieutenant Kuchiki." Orihime teased, trying to seem happy. She knew Rukia hated being addressed formally, especially by her friends.

Rukia rolled her eyes and kept her temper in check, coming to stand a few feet away from her. "There was a jigokuchō sent for you, Orihime. Head Captain Kyōraku wants you to head over to the 1st division, and from there he will take you to where you will go through the placement test." Rukia gave her a soft smile before adding, "Good luck, Orihime."

Orihime nodded her thanks and returned the smile Rukia gave her before heading in the direction the 1st division using shunpo. She loved traveling this way, reveling in the feeling of wind in her long hair, the fabric of her shihakushō moving just as wildly against her body. She felt like she was flying, the only time she felt free. She was truly grateful that Yoruichi Shihōin was her teacher.

Before long, Orihime was standing in front of the 1st division's main office where she knew the Head Captain always was, but as she was about to knock on the door, she was greeted by the very person she came to see.

"Hello, Orihime!" Head Captain Kyōraku all but sang, a bottle of sake and a cup in one hand. He motioned for her to follow as he spoke, "I've already sent those who will also gauge your abilities ahead to the designated place. Now if you'll follow me." He paused mid-step, as if he forgot something, and poked his head into his office. "My sweet Nanao! I leave everything in your hands while I'm busy today," he said in an airy sing-song voice.

For what ever reason, Orihime blushed. Perhaps out of embarrassment for Lieutenant Nanao's sake. After that, they finally went on their way to join the others.

* * *

Orihime stood before the four people who were about to gauge her abilities, but she thought this odd. She had asked Captain Ukitake about how these placement tests were usually conducted, and what she should expect. He had informed her that only three captains were ever present during these tests. Yet who stood before her was Head Captain Kyōraku, Captain Kuchiki, Captain Zaraki, and off to the side was a tall shrouded figure. This confused her.

"Judging by the look on your face, I suppose you're wondering why we have an extra in attendance, but don't pay them any attention. Shall we proceed?" The Head Captain mused, eyes dancing with mirth.

Orihime nodded once in response, left hand resting lazily on the hilt of her zanpakutō.

"Good! Okay, we'll start off with a few questions. Do you know any kidō? If so, can you demonstrate for us?" Kyōraku inquired.

Orihime smiled, letting loose some of the pristine control she had over her reiatsu before gracefully pointing the index and middle fingers of her right hand at the wall of a secluded courtyard to the right of her. She murmured "Hadō number 73, Sōren Sōkatsui," and blue energy shot out of said fingers, decimating several walls and buildings in the direction she pointed.

Once the debris settled down, Byakuya voiced his response in his usual indifferent tone, "I hope you realize you're going to pay for that. That was a careless show of your knowledge in kidō."

Orihime was annoyed at Byakuya's response, and she was about to defend herself when Kyōraku spoke up.

"Now, now. You know that is why we do this in secluded areas. We wish to see what abilities she possesses, we do not expect those we test to restrain themselves for the sake of not destroying anything. These walls and buildings can be easily rebuilt." He turned his attention to Orihime with kindness in his eyes, "Your Sōren Sōkatsui with no incantation was very powerful, not many soul reapers can perform that hadō spell without it, at least not with that power. I assume since you were with Kisuke Urahara until recently, Tessai taught you in kidō."

Orihime nodded, smiling at the kind Head Captain before adding, "He did, I also learned from Hachigen. He took a liking to me when I was still alive and offered to teach me as well. Tessai and Hachi had said that I have a knack for kidō. Probably due to the fact that I can control my reiatsu, even as a human I had no problem."

"Tch, whatever. Enough kidō talk. That stuff is for wimps. What we should focus on here is your melee skills," came the rough and impatient voice of Kenpachi. "Beyond the abilities of your zanpakutō I bet you don't even know how to use it prop-"

Before he could finish talking, Orihime swiftly drew her zanpakutō with her right hand and flash-stepped. She stood in front of Kenpachi, the blade of her zanpakutō at his throat. She spoke in a condescending tone, her gray eyes glinting with anger,"I don't mean to be rude, but you're underestimating me. I don't like it."

Kenpachi laughed, staring down at the small girl in front of him, a grin contorting his features. "Huh, seems you've changed since you were human. I like it," he said, the grin on his face growing impossibly big, making him look like a crazed maniac. "Unfortunately your blade can't cut me. Not at your current power level."

Meanwhile, Byakuya was watching the exchange between the two. Though he wouldn't admit it, Zaraki had a point. She had changed. He thought the girl undisciplined, quick to let her emotions guide her blade. His thoughts turned to the previous memories related to Orihime Inoue. He didn't come in contact with her much, but when he did he thought her delicate, caring and in control of herself. A pacifist by nature. The girl he was analyzing today was just about the opposite.

_What happened, Inoue?_

"Alright, alright you two. Orihime, could you kindly withdraw your zanpakutō from Captain Zaraki's throat?" Kyōraku said, sipping his sake.

Orihime did more than that. She moved back to where she was before, standing several meters away from them, towards the middle of the vast courtyard. She still held her zanpakutō in her right hand, but took on her nonchalant stance again.

"Okay! Now we normally do a bit of show and tell with zanpakutō demonstrations, but we're going to do it a bit differently this time." Kyōraku motioned for the shrouded figure to come forward, a mysterious playfulness twinkling in his eyes. "I'd like you to demonstrate for us by dueling him."

Orihime turned her attention back to the shrouded man, sizing him up. _This guy... I don't sense anything from him. That's impossible, right? What game is the Head Captain playing?_

"Okay, but you should stop with that look in your eyes. You look like Urahara, Head Captain," she smiled quickly at Kyōraku before addressing the mysterious man in front of her who had just made a coughing sound as if to keep from laughing. "You ready?"

By way of response, he drew his zanpakutō. He placed both hands on the hilt, as if he was about to demonstrate kendo, but then his sword split in two, he had wordlessly released his zanpakutō. The zanpakutō were completely black with no guards, the one in his left hand smaller than the other, almost like a dagger. He stood there, waiting for her to make a move.

Orihime just stared for a moment, she thought the zanpakutō before her was familiar. She narrowed her eyes and in a quick movement, moved forward and removed the hood concealing his identity instead of releasing her own zanpakutō. As soon as her eyes caught the bright orange hair, her grip on the fabric of his shroud tightened. She stood there for what seemed like forever, looking at the face of the man she once trusted and loved with all her heart. The man who killed her.

Ichigo looked down at her with cinnamon colored eyes filled with deep sorrow and guilt, shifting the sword in his right hand to his left and made to wipe the tears that were now freely falling down her cheeks, "Orihime..." he murmured gently, almost pained. Before Ichigo could, however, she slapped his hand away and in a swift movement, was standing several feet away from him. The look in her eyes pained Ichigo.

"Don't... Just don't, Kurosaki," she said, voice trembling on his name with anger, Ichigo winced in response.

Orihime moved her basic katana zanpakutō in front of her, pointing the blade towards the sky and placed her left hand on the side facing away from her as she released it in a confidant voice, "Absolve, Ten'nin!" Her zanpakutō shone with a white light that quickly faded away revealing a chokutō styled sword, the chain hanging from the end of the hilt, which held a large ring with three feather ornaments, similar to the ones that she wore in her long hair, dangling off it and tinkling in the pleasant breeze. She immediately started attacking Ichigo. "Sabakinohikari!" Orihime yelled, arching her blade up and down slashing the air several times in a manner almost like dancing, sending three fast traveling crescent shaped energy projectiles his way.

Ichigo just flash-stepped, now standing on top of one of the walls of the courtyard. He stared down at her with the same look in his cinnamon eyes. Those eyes haunted Orihime, shaking her flimsy resolve. _He has no right to look at me like that! _She internally roared. Gritting her teeth, she vanished from sight. Ichigo merely closed his eyes, feeling the weight of her hate filled reiatsu engulf him, waiting for her next attack. He ducked forwards as she appeared behind him, swinging her zanpakutō as if to behead him. Her eyes widened at his reflexes, then she quickly brought up her leg, rotating her body, kicked him hard in the side. He fell and rolled off the wall, landing on his feet like a cat and immediately flash-stepped. Orihime and Ichigo went at it like that for some time, playing cat and mouse while the captains watched on.

Byakuya resisted the urge to scoff at the two battling, using the term loosely mind you. Ichigo was only dodging and blocking, and Orihime was becoming more wild by the minute. _You fool, Ichigo Kurosaki. Why are you not attacking? The whole point of this is to see how the girl handles herself offensively and defensively. _Since Ichigo took off the cloak he was wearing earlier, all he felt from his reiatsu was remorse, which had confused him at first but then he had felt the overwhelming feelings of betrayal and rage from Orihime. He looked over at the Head Captain who was obviously enjoying himself while drinking his sake, and saw his eyes dancing with something, like he was knew something that he should have informed Kenpachi and himself of. He knew that look and he agreed with Orihime's quip from earlier. Head Captain Kyōraku looked like Kisuke Urahara when he was up to no good. Byakuya came to the conclusion that Kyōraku changed the test for this purpose, to see how Orihime would do against someone who apparently betrayed her. Again, he resisted the urge to scoff. _Senile old man. _Byakuya was brought out of his thoughts when he heard a loud explosion, debris from a wall almost hitting him. He turned his attention back to the two, feeling nothing but contempt for them now.

Orihime and Ichigo were standing far apart, the former breathing heavily and trembling from rage. Ichigo continued to look at her with his remorseful gaze, he wanted to talk to her and explain what really happened that night, but truth of the matter is he blamed himself as much as she thought him a murderer. He had long since decided he would let her kill him, if that would give her the peace she needed, but first he would let her take out her anger on him until he was able to talk to her.

_Stop... Stop looking at me like that... Stop... Stop! _"Stop! Stop it, Ichigo!" She yelled, almost desperately. Orihime's grip on her zanpakutō tightened until her knuckles her white, using her left hand to make a triangle in the air in front of her, she said "Bakudō number 30 Shitotsu Sansen." Ichigo hadn't bothered avoiding it, letting himself get pinned to the undamaged part of the wall behind him by the kidō spell.

"You have no right to look at me with those eyes, Ichigo Kurosaki. A murderer doesn't look at the person he killed like that." Her suddenly cold, unwavering voice cut Ichigo deeper than anything. He felt his resolve to explain things to her fade away and he hung his head, his shaggy orange locks hiding his eyes, unable to look at her anymore.

_Murderer... _Hot tears rolled down Ichigo's cheeks, unable to hold them back. _I'm... a murderer._ He suddenly heard quick foot steps on the hard ground, she was charging at him for the finishing blow. He knew her zanpakutō was aimed right at his heart, he didn't need to look at her to know this. _Orihime... Please kill me, I don't deserve to live anymore. I killed you, avenge yourself and finally feel peace. _Then the rapid sound of foot steps stopped, and at first he thought he was dead, but then it didn't make sense and he looked up. What he saw confused him. Standing before him was Orihime, eyes mirroring his own confusion, her zanpakutō an inch from his chest. He vaguely noticed Byakuya standing next to them, captain's haori billowing around him and his hand poised above Orihime's right hand, ready to stop her attack.

"Why... Why are you crying? Why can't I kill you?" Orihime all but croaked, her zanpakutō reverting back to its sealed form. "You killed me, right? But I feel so conflicted all of a sudden. Why, Ichigo?" She dropped to her knees, staring at Ichigo, looking as if she was about to go insane.

Byakuya was utterly confused by this whole thing again, but decided to ask questions later. He looked down at Orihime and saw that she was going into hysterics so he swiftly hit a pressure point and knocked her out. As soon as Ichigo was free from the bakudō spell he vanished. Byakuya narrowed his eyes in response to Ichigo's vanishing act and then picked up Orihime, craddling her in his arms. Turning to the Head Captain he said, "I'm going to take Inoue to the 4th and have Lieutenant Kotetsu take care of her."

"Alright, Captain Kuchiki. After you give her to Lieutenant Kotetsu, we should discuss the matter of what we should do with Orihime Inoue in the captain's meeting room. Though I think I know just the thing." Kyōraku said, eyes glinting with a new devious plan as he observed how Byakuya held the girl in his arms. He looked as if he'd protect her no matter what. _Hmm... Interesting behavior._ Though he doubted Byakuya was aware of it himself.

Byakuya closed his eyes, yet again resisting the urge to scoff at the Head Captain's expression. Instead he gave a curt nod before swiftly heading towards the 4th division. He glanced down at the girl in his arms, he realized that she was very beautiful. He felt compelled to help her finally find peace, to solve the conflict between her and Ichigo. Then he made a face, banishing those thoughts from his mind, and looked away from her. _Foolish. Do not get involved. _He looked down at her again, and his features softened. _Unruly woman, you'll be the end of me._

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A/N: Alright! Chapter 1. R&R please! I have some interesting things planned for the next chapter. I'm excited about this story and I hope you are too.

Ps. Does anyone think it's a bit ironic Orihime's release command is "Absolve?" I do~

Ten'nin means "Heavenly being" and Sabakinohikari means "Light of Judgement"


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: I've made minor changes to this chapter since originally posting it.

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**Chapter 2**

**Verdict**

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_'Orihime,'_ came a soft, eerie voice. This voice was familiar, but she couldn't quite place it at first. _'Orihime! Child, wake up,' _the eerie voice commanded, the owner of such a voice placing a warm hand on Orihime's cheek, finally stirring her awake.

Orihime sat up slowly, it took a moment for her eyes to adjust, she felt awful but at the same time she felt warm and safe. A feeling she had come to associate with her inner world. Her eyes first scanned the area around her, taking in the beauty of it. Her inner world was a massive island in the sky, the sun shining brightly upon the expanse of grass and wild flowers. The sound of running water and a waterfall was soothing, the river, which cut through the meadow, ran off the edge of the island but on the other end was a large lake which was half hidden within the forest that surrounded the meadow. Off in the distance, within the forest was a large hill and on top rested a grand Japanese temple, the red gates barely visible over the trees. She then noticed something different, there were ominous clouds gathering in the sky. She turned her gaze towards her zanpakutō spirit, her eyes questioning.

"Child, do you remember the second time you visited your inner world?" Ten'nin inquired, her bright blue eyes searching for something within Orihime's gray ones, but when she didn't find what she was looking for she continued, "The second time you came here, I warned you that if you stopped moving forward that clouds would come and blot out the sun. I warned you that I would be very upset should that happen."

Orihime's eyes grew sad, and she looked away from Ten'nin and drew up her knees, resting her chin on them. Ten'nin knelt before Orihime, the layers of her over-sized white kimono billowing around her on the ground, and placed a delicate hand on top of Orihime's head in an attempt to comfort her master. She spoke again, "Because I am you, I know what is bothering you. I fear you're missing something from the night you died. The memories of that night aren't whole."

Orihime's eyes suddenly flashed with stubbornness, she looked up at her zanpakutō spirit, "I know exactly what happened that night. I was murdered by someone who I thought I loved and trusted. If he hadn't actually murdered me, if what I have thought was the truth wasn't actually what happened, why didn't Ichigo tell me otherwise? Why would he leave me to believe that he had killed me for 15 years? Why was he crying earlier? Why did it seem like he wanted me to kill him, that he'd do anything in order for me to finally feel peace?" She covered her face with her hands. "I don't know what to believe anymore, Ten'nin. I'm so torn. My very being sings with the feeling of deep seeded betrayal and yet my mind no longer thinks the same way. I felt a pang of guilt for blaming Ichigo while I was charging at him with the intent of killing him. I'm so confused, I don't think I can talk to him yet."

Ten'nin gently removed Orihime's hands from her face and tilted her face to make eye contact. "Orihime, you're forgetting that there was another person there that night. Your friend Uryū Ishida. The one who gave you this pretty blue obi you always wear." Ten'nin smiled, brushing her fingers along the fabric of said obi. "Perhaps he also knows exactly what happened that night."

Orihime's eyes lit up with hope, and a small smile graced her lips. Ten'nin was right. She had never thought of asking Uryū about it. "Thank you, Ten'nin."

Ten'nin smiled sweetly before leaning close and pressing her soft pink lips against Orihime's forhead in a gentle kiss. "It is time for you to wake up, Orihime, but remember that if you don't keep the clouds away, the next time you come back to your inner world I won't be so gentle with you."

* * *

Orihime slowly opened her eyes, and looked around trying to figure out where she was now. She had been placed in an almost completely white room, laying on a small bed near an open window. She sat up and looked outside, enjoying the light breeze. It was late afternoon, going on evening, the sun low in the sky. She knew where she was now. _Someone must have taken me to the 4__th division. I wonder why..._

"Oh! You're awake, Orihime. How are you feeling?" came the voice of Isane Kotetsu, startling Orihime out of her thoughts. Isane noticed that she had scared the girl and bowed deeply, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you!"

Orihime relaxed and smiled reassuringly at the Lieutenant, "Oh, no it's alright. I was just deep in thought and I didn't notice you come into the room. I'm completely fine. Lieutenant Kotetsu, how did I end up here? How long was I out?"

Isane relaxed as well, looking at Orihime with slight concern in her eyes, "You've been out for a few hours. Captain Kuchiki showed up here with you unconscious in his arms. He gave me a few details. He told me he was forced to knock you out during your placement test to keep you from losing yourself and going into hysterics, but he couldn't give me anymore information. Are you sure you're alright? No headache or anything?"

Orihime's mood instantly changed and she looked down, wringing her hands. "I-I don't want to talk about it. I'm fine, I swear," she looked back at the Lieutenant and saw she wasn't buying it, but it wasn't like healing kidō could mend the mind or help solve her problems. There wasn't anything Isane could do. "Is Captain Kuchiki still here? I suppose I should thank him for knocking me out and bringing me here."

"Captain Kuchiki had to immediately leave for a captain's meeting. I'm sure you can see him soon though," Isane gave a small smile and then blinked as a jigokuchō flew in front of her face. She held up her hand for it to rest upon and receive its message. A moment passed and the butterfly flew away. Isane looked at Orihime, "Well, Head Captain Kyōraku would like you to go to the meeting room now. Do you know the way?"

Orihime nodded, feeling nervous now. She slid out of bed and fixed her shihakushō and hair before looking at the Lieutenant and bowing, "Thank you for looking after me, Lieutenant Kotetsu."

* * *

Orihime stood in front of the door of the meeting room, waiting to be let inside. She was nervous, Orihime knew that she most likely ruined her chances at the spot she wanted. Since the former Captain Unohana's death, the 4th division hasn't had a captain. No one has been able to fill that spot. She had been set on that spot since the war ended, getting training in healing kidō, even begging Yoruichi and Urahara to use the special technique to achieve bankai. She balled her hands into fists at her sides, disappointed in herself. _Stupid._

The door opened and the Head Captain called for her to come inside. She did so, her eyes looking at the rows of captains on either side of the room. Her eyes landed on Love Aikawa who had taken over the 8th division with Lisa Yadōmaru as his Lieutenant when Shunsui Kyōraku got promoted. He seemed happy being a captain again. Her eyes shifted and saw something that confused her. Izuru Kira, looking as solemn as ever, stood in the spot designated for the 4th division captain, now wearing a captain's haori over his shihakushō. She had stopped walking forwards and Izuru noticed, he looked at her with an apology in his eyes as if willing her to forgive him.

Shinji, noticing the exchange between Izuru and Orihime, he decided to lighten the mood. "Orihime! My first love!" he sang, and sprang forwards to smother her in a hug, but he was stopped by Love and Rose.

"Now is not the time," the both said in unison, dragging him back to where he was standing.

"Behave or we'll get Hiyori." Rose said in a sing-song voice. This made Shinji cooperate immediately, pouting unhappily.

Orihime blinked almost comically at Shinji's sudden outburst and at how the two captains handled the situation. She moved forwards to stand in the center of the room, looking towards the Head Captain, waiting for the verdict. Though she had a feeling she knew what he was about to say.

"Such a lively bunch," Kyōraku chuckled, and then his demeanor changed and became more serious. He trained his gaze on Orihime before he spoke, "Well then, shall we inform you of our decision?"

Orihime stared at Kyōraku a moment, almost dumbfounded. She never realized how intimidating he could be. She then noticed he was actually waiting for a response and so she numbly nodded.

"As you've probably already guessed, you failed. You are not fit to be a captain. We had been grooming Izuru Kira to succeed as the new captain of the 4th since after the war, just in case this happened. He was the next logical choice since he used to be in that division before he became the Lieutenant of the 3rd division," Kyōraku informed her as kindly as possible, and Orihime had to force herself not to react. She perked up as he continued, "However, this isn't set in stone. We are aware of your potential. For now we would like to place you as the new Lieutenant of the 3rd division. We would also like for you to receive training in the matter of controlling yourself, which Captain Kuchiki has generously agreed to help you with. He and I agree that you are reckless and you let your emotions guide your zanpakutō. This makes you weak, Orihime Inoue."

Orihime flinched at the last comment, she felt a mixture of embarrassment and disappointment in herself. _Weak..._ He was right of course. She felt her eyes sting as tears began to form, but she did her best to keep them from falling. She would not break down in front of everyone. She would stay strong. Orihime knew that Kyōraku was also subtly telling her to fix whatever it was between herself and Ichigo.

Kyōraku's flamboyant attitude returned, smiling he said, "Alright! You're all dismissed." Most left the room, a few lingering behind. As he passed Orihime he placed a hand on her shoulder and said with gravity, "You'll be staying with Captain Kuchiki instead of moving into the 3rd division barracks. I'm sorry, Orihime."

Orihime looked down at the floor, some of her dark orange hair falling to cover her face. A rogue tear escaped, then she felt a gentle hand come under her chin and lift her face to look into the eyes of her new captain.

"Don't look so down, you're in good hands. Shunsui said that this wasn't set in stone. You have all the time in the world to redeem yourself, Orihime." Rose smiled reassuringly, while wiping her tears away gently. He placed the 3rd division lieutenant badge in her hand, "This is yours now, at least for the time being. I'll see you again tomorrow, alright?"

Orihime returned his smile, a faint blush resting upon her cheeks. She was already feeling better. Perhaps this wasn't so bad, at least she was under a very nice captain. "I'll see you tomorrow, Captain Ōtoribashi," she agreed.

Rose frowned for a moment before his smile returned at full force, "You may address me as Rose, if you'd like. You don't need to be so formal with me, Orihime."

She nodded, and her captain walked off. Rose grabbed Shinji by the back of his haori and dragged him out of the room with him while Shinji complained loudly about how Rose was being unfair. Orihime stared after them, confused. She turned and saw Izuru standing there, still looking apologetic. She decided to fix that, so she walked over to him and placed her left hand on his upper arm, putting on a big smile she said, "Congratulations, Captain Kira." He still looked at her with an apologetic expression. Orihime suddenly poked him in the stomach and said, "You better not apologize to me, and you better give it your all. Before you know it I'll swoop in and kick your butt and take over as captain!"

This made Izuru smile. He waved a hand, jokingly dismissing her. "Yeah, yeah. Will do." He ruffled her hair, which made Orihime squeal and flail her arms at him to make him stop. Izuru chuckled as he quickly escaped.

Orihime sighed, running her hands through her long hair in an attempt to fix it. Byakuya flared his reiatsu, trying to get her attention in a subtle manner. He was getting impatient. Orihime noticed and immediately stopped fixing her hair. She looked at Byakuya and sheepishly mumbled an apology.

"Since you're staying with me for the time being, I'll show you the way to the Kuchiki Manor. Please follow me, Lieutenant Inoue," Byakuya said, in his usual stoic manner. He began to leave the room and make his way to the Manor, not waiting for Orihime.

_This is going to be fun... _Orihime resisted the urge to do any type of defiant gestures and quickly followed after the noble.

* * *

Trailing a respectful distance behind Byakuya, she gazed up at the darkening sky and saw ominous clouds in the sky. _Rain... It's going to rain. _She could feel it, feel a small spark of panic deep within her. She hated the rain ever since the night she died. Orihime quickened her pace and was now walking side by side with Byakuya.

Byakuya briefly glanced at the girl beside him, noticing a change in her demeanor. She seemed in a hurry. He followed her gaze up towards the twilight sky and saw the clouds, "We should beat the rain."

Orihime practically jumped, was she that obvious? She refocused her gaze on the ground ahead of her before responding. "It doesn't matter," she said somberly, worrying her hands.

They were only five minutes away from the Kuchiki Manor. He thought her behavior peculiar, afraid of the rain he supposed. Byakuya wanted to ask her so many questions, but then decided he didn't particularly care.

Rain started to fall just as they were at the gate to the Kuchiki Manor. Byakuya was brought out of his thoughts when he felt a hand grasp at the sleeve of his shihakushō. He looked down at the offender with annoyance clear on his face, but then he saw the look of panic in Orihime's eyes. She was standing there, looking at nothing, with her free hand balled in a fist and pressed to her chest. Byakuya's expression softened, he thought she looked like a child who was scared of the dark. He decided to be accommodating, gently prying her hand off his sleeve and placed a hand on her back, leading her into the estate where they could escape the rain.

Once under the protection of shelter, he asked a servant to prepare a room and to retrieve a sleeping yukata for Orihime. Byakuya thought that once she was no longer being rained upon that her anxiety about the rain would lessen, but as the rain grew heavy her anxiety grew as well. Orihime was clutching Byakuya tightly, burying her face into his captain's haori. He frowned, at a loss as to what to do about this situation. He wasn't used to having someone so close to him or dealing with peoples fears and anxiety problems. If it got any worse he could always knock her out again, but he didn't like the idea of making a habit of it, he supposed he could just send for someone from the 4th division. Surely they would have a remedy for this sort of thing.

The servant he had sent off returned and lead them to the room they had prepared, letting him know that dinner would be ready in a moment. Byakuya nodded in response as he guided the girl clinging to him into the room where she would stay for an indefinite amount of time. He waited for her to release him, but she seemed unresponsive by this point. He gently pried her from his person and handed her the sleeping yukata. "Change into this, I'll have the servants bring dinner to you tonight. Get some rest, Inoue," he said, hoping his words would reach her in her almost catatonic state. He sighed and then stepped outside the room, sliding the screen shut. He listened for any sign of movement, his ears picked up the sound of shifting fabric. Pleased, he went in search of a servant to have them send dinner to Orihime's room tonight.

Byakuya thought back to what Orihime had said earlier. _"It doesn't matter,"_ he supposed that this is what she meant. Whether in the rain or under shelter, her reaction to the rain would be the same. _A crippling fear of rain... Strange. _Orihime Inoue couldn't get any more confusing to the noble. He pushed her from his thoughts and went to his room to change before dinner.

Later, after Byakuya finished dinner, he decided to check on Orihime since it was still raining hard. He paused outside her room, his hand poised to slide the screen to enter her room. He heard a mixture of gasps and sobs. Byakuya furrowed his brow and quickly entered her room. He saw Orihime in the fetal position, her back to him, laying on the futon that had been put out for her. As his eyes scanned the rest of the room, he noticed her clothes in a pile next to the futon, and she hadn't touched her food. He shut the screen behind him and went to kneel next to the girl, placing a hand on her arm as if to try and comfort her. She had recoiled from his touch at first and then relaxed a little, turning to look at the noble.

Byakuya frowned, this girl in front of him was a mess. He had a feeling that this episode was tied to what ever he had witnessed earlier that day, and that Ichigo had something to do with this. He made a mental note to track down Ichigo Kurosaki and ask him about what ever the hell happened between these two. His job was to help Orihime learn control of her emotions during battle, and solving this would help he figured. Though he knew it would be difficult to find him and get him to cooperate. After the war ended, Ichigo was told he could never return to the world of the living. He ended up taking it pretty hard and disappeared for a long time. Byakuya was aware he resided somewhere outside the Seireitei, but no one knows where. He just shows up every once in a while and then vanishes again, like today.

Byakuya studied Orihime again for a moment before starting to stand up to go find a servant to send to get someone from the 4th, but he stopped when he heard her murmur, "Don't go... please." He complied with her request, watching her intently.

Orihime wiped her face with the sleeve of her yukata and sniffled, she felt a little better. "I'm sorry for troubling you with all this," she murmured, embarrassed over melting down twice in one day in front of Byakuya. "I'm sure you regret agreeing to help me by now," she said, sadness creeping into the tone of her voice.

"Not particularly, though I am confused by your reaction to the rain. May I ask as to why you react this way?" He studied her, he face a stoic mask, but his eyes show concern.

Orihime took a deep, steadying breath before answering, "Well, it's not always this bad. Sometimes I barely react and sometimes it's worse than tonight. I get panic attacks when it rains because it was raining the night I died. It's one of the more prominent parts of that memory. I don't remember much of that night."

"What can you tell me about that night?" he inquired, hoping to get closer to solving this issue.

"As I said, I don't remember much. The first thing I remember is Ichigo, then the feeling of falling, it goes black and then blood, blood everywhere. My body twisted at odd, unnatural angles, laying in front of me. Rain..." she went silent then, new tears forming in her eyes, her breathing quickening again. Orihime suddenly clung to Byakuya again, her face buried against his chest as she sobbed.

Byakuya was surprised by this, and felt awkward again. He really didn't know how to properly handle these sorts of situations. He did the logical thing and awkwardly wrapped his arms around her, murmuring, "It's alright, Inoue. You don't need to tell me anything else." Hoping it would calm her down again. Needless to say, they stayed like that late into the night, much to the noble's chagrin.

* * *

A/N: Okiedokie! Here is Chapter 2, I hope you enjoy this story so far. Please don't forget to review!

I hope you like what I did with replacing Unohana and 8th division captain/lieutenant. I thought it would be a logical choice!


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: I've made changes to previous chapters, as well as this chapter, significantly the name of Orihime's primary ability. Hopefully everything flows better. Hehe~

* * *

**Chapter Three**

**Duel**

* * *

As the early morning sun's rays began to filter through the window, streaking across Orihime's face, who was sprawled out on her futon and tangled in her blanket. She began to stir from her slumber, her ears picking up the melodic chirping of birds outside. Stretching, she opened her eyes and looked around the room. She noticed that her stuff that was left at the 13th division was against one wall of her room. She smiled, glad she didn't need to go retrieve her things. As she began to remember the events of last night, a blush crept up, staining her cheeks out of embarrassment. _Aw man... Breaking down several times in one day. How will I be able to show my face around Captain Kuchiki again? He probably thinks the worst of me._

With a heavy sigh, she stood up, gathered her uniform, and her bag of toiletries. Orihime sorely needed a bath to start the long day ahead of her. She set off in search of a bathroom, hoping not to get lost in what seemed like a maze that is the Kuchiki Estate. During her journey to find a bathroom, she crossed paths with a servant who took the liberty of informing her that breakfast would be ready in about an hour as well as showed her where the bathroom was.

After her much needed bath, Orihime felt like she was totally refreshed. She sat in front of a mirror, brushing her long dark orange hair, parting it on the left and began to put two cornrow type braids on that side, tying them off close to her scalp and attaching her signature feather ornaments to the ties. Pleased with her appearance, she began to make her way to the dinning room for breakfast, again hoping not to get lost.

* * *

Just as he was almost finished getting dressed, a servant gently knocked on the wood part of the screen to Byakuya's rooms. They let him know that breakfast was ready, and he thanked them in his usual manner. Running a hand through his dark hair he stifled a yawn. Byakuya barely got four hours of sleep the previous night. He sighed and rubbed his temples, letting out some of his contempt for the girl that was now in his care before fixing his features into the usual stoic mask he wore and began making his way to the dinning room for breakfast.

Byakuya still felt like he owed Ichigo Kurosaki for everything he has done for Soul Society. He would remain diligent in helping Orihime Inoue since she was his comrade.

He entered the dinning room, noticing his sister was already there, talking to Orihime who sat to her left. They seemed to not notice him until he sat in his usual spot at the low table, a servant pouring him some hot tea.

"Good morning, brother," Rukia said and began eating, not noticing the change in Orihime's composure.

Orihime stared down at her food, not wanting to seem rude she finally managed to speak. "G-Good morning, Captain Kuchiki," she murmured and then began to nervously stuff her face.

Byakuya briefly closed his eyes before giving a curt nod, "Good morning."

Breakfast went on in awkward silence until Byakuya excused himself in order to head to the 6th division to begin work. Orihime, finally mustering the courage to talk to Byakuya, followed suit. She walked quickly to catch up to him.

"Captain Kuchiki, I'd like to thank you for yesterday. I'm sorry for being a bother," she said, looking up at Byakuya as she walked beside him.

"It is not a problem. Although you should talk to someone about your reaction to the rain. It is not healthy," he responded in his usual tone, looking straight ahead.

"Um, I don't know who I should ask. I'd like to go back to the world of the living for a day," Orihime said, now looking down at the ground as they walked.

"Why do you wish to go to the world of the living?" Byakuya inquired, briefly looking down at Orihime.

"Well, when you knocked me out yesterday I ended up in my inner world. My zanpakutō spirit, Ten'nin, said that my memories of the night I died aren't whole. Which makes sense, but I don't know where Ichigo is nor am I ready to talk to him since I still feel like he killed me. Ten'nin reminded me that there was someone else I could ask about it. The person I need to talk to is still alive."

Byakuya thought about this. It would be good for her to finally solve the mystery of that night, and mend her relationship with Ichigo. The thing that bothered him was that it had been fifteen years since she died, why hadn't anyone told the girl? "Who is it you need to talk to?" he asked.

"Uryū Ishida," Orihime murmured in response, looking up at the noble with hope in her eyes.

"The Quincy leader?"

Orihime nodded, "Yup! The very same."

Byakuya was silent a moment, considering the best course of action before speaking. "I will allow you to use the Kuchiki private Senkaimon, but you will need to ask Captain Ōtoribashi for permission to take a day off since you just became his lieutenant."

Orihime's face lit up, a big smile gracing her face. "Thank you so much, Captain Kuchiki. You're a generous man, different from how I've come to expect. During his stay in the world of the living years ago, Renji used to tell us horror stories..." she trailed off, noticing the noble stopped walking. She clasped a hand over her mouth and turned around. "I, uh... Sorry! I'll be going to the 3rd division now, Rose is expecting me." She bowed low before vanishing from sight, hoping that she didn't just get Renji in trouble.

Byakuya's eyebrow twitched, his temper boiling under the surface. He should be used to that sort of response by now. It's not the first time that he'd roused such from others, or as if he cared... He didn't care, right? He thought for a moment and decided that no, he didn't care. His charge only managed to invoke emotions he thought he buried ages ago. Not a small feat in and of itself. Yoruichi Shihōin and sometimes, Ichigo Kurosaki manage to bypass his barriers. Byakuya sighed, he would take it out on his Lieutenant today. That would make him feel better, he mused to himself, a small devious smirk gracing his lips.

* * *

Once Orihime got to the 3rd division barracks, she went in search of her captain since she wasn't sure what her duties would consist of as a lieutenant of the 3rd. As she searched, those who were a part of the division looked at her strangely, though some had recognition in their eyes. She felt awkward being stared at like that.

"Good morning, Orihime," came the sing-song voice of Rose. He frowned when he noticed her tense, "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I thought you were particularly gifted in sensing reiatsu of others."

Orihime relaxed and turned around to face her captain, a sheepish smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "Well, seems I've become lazy over the years," she laughed nervously, still feeling the stares from others. It wasn't that she was lazy, she was just distracted by a lot of things.

"Hmm," he mused, looking around them. "Why don't we introduce you to the division as the new Lieutenant and then I'll go over with you on what your duties will be." He gave her a reassuring smile.

"Alright," Orihime murmured, following her captain to a building where she assumed he would gather everyone and introduce her. She hoped they would accept her as their lieutenant.

* * *

After several hours straight of paperwork, Byakuya placed his calligraphy brush down and decided he was much too tired and bored. Standing up, he smoothed his clothes to make sure he looked decent. He inwardly smirked as he anticipated his lieutenant's reaction. Byakuya would sometimes dump extra work on Renji, it was his guilty pleasure because his lieutenant never caught on to the fact that Byakuya was simply picking on him and had a concept of fun. Little known fact about the noble.

He walked over to the door of his office and stopped momentarily, looking at Renji with his usual cold gaze. "Abarai, I'm going to go home early today. Make sure you take care of the rest before you leave," he said in his authoritative voice, lingering a bit longer to witness his lieutenant's reaction.

He watched as Renji looked up at him confused at first, then turned his gaze to the piles of paperwork on Byakuya's desk and the ones already in front of him that he was currently sorting through. Byakuya could feel the tangible despair in the air around his lieutenant, but of course Renji wouldn't oppose his captain's wishes.

"Y-yes Captain Kuchiki, I'll have it done by tonight..." he said, hanging his head.

Byakuya left the office and paused near the door, closing his eyes and listening for the typical reaction. He smirked briefly when he heard a loud, "Damn it! This is so not fair!" along with an endless stream of loud mutterings. He composed himself, his gray eyes dancing with a bit of mirth. Byakuya began walking aimlessly around the Seireitei, enjoying the nice weather.

Sometime during his leisurely walk, he ended up in front of the 3rd division's barracks. He paused, staring at the large wood gate to the grounds, a frown forming on his lips. Why did he end up here? Suddenly he heard a loud squeal and a man's voice he recognized as Captain Ōtoribashi yelling, "Stop that, you idiot!" and then a rogue red energy ball broke through the gate and barely missed Byakuya, hitting the wall behind him.

Resisting the urge to growl in irritation, he placed the tips of his fingers on his temples. He knew this spiritual pressure all too well by now. He also knew that this girl would be trouble for him. Byakuya burst through the gate, his face stern and cold. His eyes landing on Rose, Orihime, and Shinji. He noticed that Rose was trying to pry Shinji off Orihime, and the girl was trying to pry Shinji's hands off her eyes. This explained the yelling, he supposed, but not so much the Shakkahō that almost hit him.

Byakuya decided he wanted answers and he couldn't do that with them like this. He pointed a finger at Shinji's head and uttered, "Shō," sending Shinji back, forcing him to finally let go of Orihime. This also gained Byakuya the attention of not only the three who were fighting with each other, but those of the 3rd division who were watching them.

Byakuya ignored the onlookers, fixing his cold eyes on Orihime who was staring at him in shock. "Why is it that you find ways to destroy things with kidō and threaten my person?" the girl in question flinched at his harsh tone, but he ignored that response, continuing. "You boast about being gifted in using kidō but every time I see you use it you contradict yourself, Lieutenant Inoue."

Orihime didn't like the way he addressed her just then, like she was nothing but a child he was scolding. She wasn't a child anymore, this whole thing also wasn't her fault. She turned and looked at Shinji who now had the audacity to look sheepish. She turned back to the all mighty noble who was staring her down. Orihime was about to retort but she was interrupted by her captain.

"It wasn't Orihime's fault. Shinji pestered her into showing him her abilities with kidō and then had the bright idea to mess with her just as she was casting the Shakkahō that apparently almost hit you. I would appreciate it if you stopped treating Orihime like she's a child, and stop staring at her like that. I don't do well when I feel my family is threatened, Byakuya," Rose said, staring the noble down. There were gasps among the onlookers, not many dared to address the Byakuya so casually.

"Family?" came the only response from the noble who seemed to have relaxed, but then he deemed it necessary to add, "It's Captain Kuchiki."

Rose smiled, all too happy to explain. "You see, back when Orihime first met us, the Vizards, we were wary but then Hachigen took an immediate liking to her. At the time they both shared very similar abilities. We were all happy that Hachi finally found someone like him. Since then we've always thought of her as one of our own. Not to mention this whole division is my family." There were more gasps behind them, the onlookers practically swooning over Rose's kind words. Orihime smiled, she supposed that they were, in a way, a family.

Shinji grabbed Orihime from behind, snaking his arms around her waist and resting his chin on her shoulder. He stared at the noble with his usual bored expression. Orihime tried to free herself of his grasp again, but to no avail. She sighed, settling for standing there, blushing. Byakuya didn't like the way Shinji was looking at him, or how he had his hands all over the girl.

"You know... I bet you can't even beat our precious Orihime in a duel," came the bored, yet taunting tone. Upon hearing those words, Orihime began to squirm in his grasp again, trying to escape before she got pushed into something bad again.

"Captain Hirako, your poor attem-"

He was cut off by Rose, "Oh! Brilliant idea. Orihime how about you duel Byakuya. I've been dying to see your zanpakutō in action." He looked at her as if prompting her to begin.

Orihime hung her head and sighed. Why did she have to duel Byakuya? Why was he even hear anyways? "Why can't I duel one of you instead?" She inquired, hoping that one of them would agree to duel her instead.

"I can't duel my first love!" Shinji said, appalled.

"I'd much rather watch. I always enjoy a good show." Rose said.

Orihime groaned, stepping away from Shinji when she realized he had let her go. She contemplated running away from the madness, but then again she didn't want to look like a coward. She began to unsheathe her zanpakutō, but she stopped when Byakuya turned around and made to leave.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Orihime called after the noble, unable to believe that she was actually attempting to stop him. She had a feeling he was looking down on her again, and she didn't like it one bit.

The noble stopped and turned slightly to stare at Orihime again, the look in his gray eyes sent chills down her spine. "I don't feel like playing around with you. From what I've witnessed before, I doubt you are capable enough to withstand my zanpakutō." He turned away from her again and started walking forwards. He stopped when he heard her voice again.

"Why is it you're so confusing? Sometimes you act like you care, then you do everything in your power to belittle me and push me away. You really think I'm worthless? Let me prove otherwise, Byakuya," she said, stepping forwards, drawing her zanpakutō. She watched as the noble finally turned around and faced her head on, drawing his own weapon. Orihime noticed something different in his demeanor, something that she didn't know how to place.

Byakuya didn't know why, but he felt something akin to happiness when he heard Orihime say his name so boldly rather than getting annoyed that she hadn't addressed him properly. He liked the determination in her eyes, and he supposed it would be valuable to know what she was truly capable of. "If you don't keep your emotions in check during this duel, I won't hesitate to punish you. Keep a clear head, Inoue." He held his zanpakutō upside down and let it fall, "Bankai, Senbonzakura Kageyoshi," he said as massive blades arose from the ground. Orihime was overwhelmed by the reiatsu that swam towards her. Byakuya paused for a brief moment before giving his command, "Scatter."

Orihime's eyes widdened, she didn't think he would go straight into bankai. She countered his immense reiatsu with her own and watched as his beautiful zanpakutō swarmed around him, the thousands of cherry blossom petals dancing with grace. She raised her own zanpakutō, pointing it towards the sky, and placing her left hand on the blade, she released her weapon with confidence, "Absolve, Ten'nin." She was aware of how Byakuya's zanpakutō worked for the most part. Orihime had witnessed the majority of the battle between him and Ichigo years ago. Her eyes caught how there was a space around Byakuya where the blades never went inside.

Byakuya watched her intently, gauging every miniscule movement she made. He caught her eyes watching how his Senbonzakura Kageyoshi moved around his feet, always staying a safe distance from his person. He narrowed his eyes. _Could she have realized my weakness? No one has ever figured it out __in this way, not even Ichigo. The girl would be foolish if she decided to exploit my weakness. _Deciding he was bored with waiting for her to engage, he sent a wave of blades at her. Just as they were about to make contact, Orihime's form blurred as she flash-stepped to evade the attack. _She's fast, but not faster than me. _Byakuya had a feeling he knew where she would end up, and this hunch was confirmed when he felt the sharp blade of her zanpakutō pressing into his right side, at his waist. He quickly turned his head and flashed her a small, devious smile before disappearing.

Orihime's eyes widened again. _He's so fast, and it's as if he kn-_ she didn't have time to finish her thought as she saw in the corner of her eye the form of Byakuya, outstretching his right hand and making a fist. It was then that she realized that she played into his trap. The thousands of blades began to swarm her at all angles, quickly moving in to smother her. _He's going to kill me! _Orihime hunched down, and stabbed the ground with her zanpakutō. She uttered "Seifuku no Hikari!" and a large circle formed on the ground, suddenly the blades stopped advancing. She could tell that Byakuya was fighting to keep his zanpakutō from succumbing to her ability as the thousands of blades were shivering in mid air. In order to protect herself from what was about to happen, she aimed a shakkahō at the wall of blades before her and used the force of the spell to escape the area as the blades trapped in the column of light fell harshly to the ground making a loud sound like violent waves crashing against land. She knew she would have to end this quickly because that ability drained her reiatsu the longer she held it. Orihime needed to beat him.

Byakuya eyes were the only part of his face that betrayed the amount surprise and confusion he felt when he suddenly lost control over the command he gave his zanpakutō. He watched as Orihime exploded out of the prison of blades he had cornered her into, her reiatsu flaring out dangerously. Byakuya could feel her anger as she once again stood before him, her limbs and face now adorned with hundreds of shallow cuts. He would have commented on her lack of control, but her deadly serious expression kept him from doing such. He noticed her grip tighten on her zanpakutō and her stance changed to where she looked like she was ready to pounce on her prey which was currently him.

Byakuya realized that she hadn't trapped all of his zanpakutō in that strange light, he opened his right hand and called the blades forth, creating a glowing pink blade. As he was doing this Orihime took that moment to spring forwards in a series of shunpo, snaking as she advanced forwards. Before her blade could connect with his body, Byakuya swiftly redirected it with his left hand, making it only graze his side. At the same time he also brought the fully formed blade down, pressing the tip firmly into Orihime's back, drawing blood but not sinking deep into her flesh, the action was intended more as a warning. They stayed like that for a moment, the people still able to watch and withstand their reiatsu were deadly quiet, although there were a few new onlookers. Byakuya felt her grab his captain's haori with her left hand as if to steady herself, he could feel her reiatsu draining because she still kept up that light ability. What happened next shocked everyone.

Orihime opened her left hand and firmly pressed it against Byakuya's chest, uttering a firm, "Hadō number four, Byakurai!" Pale lightning shot through the right side of Byakuya's chest, ruining his clothes and leaving a burn mark where her hand was on his body. Byakuya was stunned more than anything, he looked down at the girl before him, eyes dancing with surprise.

Orihime finally released her ability which was still holding down most of his zanpakutō, noticing she barely did anything to him with her hadō spell because she used up too much reiatsu. She uttered a defeated, "Damn," and then began to fall to her knees, unable to keep herself upright anymore. Orihime kept her eyes on the ground, unable to look up at Byakuya. She was foolish to think she stood a chance against him.

Byakuya kept his eyes on the crumpled form of Orihime, confusion marring his face. He didn't noticed that he still held her zanpakutō in his left hand by the blade, his blood dripping continuously down the metal. He called forth his zanpakutō, reforming and sheathing it. He didn't feel like he won, but judging by the way she was currently, Orihime didn't think she had won either.

"So, uh... Can someone fill us in why Captain Kuchiki and Lieutenant Inoue were fighting?" came the wary voice of Izuru Kira. Isane Kotetsu was standing at his left, a worried look on her face.

Byakuya's eyes settled on various lieutenants and captains that must have grown curious about his duel with Orihime. The 13th, 12th, 7th, 1st, and of course his lieutenant were the only ones that didn't wander to their location. He was about to say something when they all heard a loud "Kenny, we're here!" Everyone watched as Captain Zaraki, with his lieutenant on his shoulder, came through the gate.

"Damn, we missed the fun."

* * *

A/N: So... Yay for another chapter. Sorry for not updating in a while.

Seifuku no Hikari (Light of Subjugation) is basically similar to Rukia's _Somen no mai, Tsukishiro_, but instead of ice it creates a column of light that intensifies the force of gravity so much that it can pin down an enemy or projectiles. This can be used on any flat surface. Keeping the ability up drains her reiatsu though.

If you're also curious about why Orihime hasn't even used bankai yet (she is capable of it in my story mind you), it's because 1) it's not fully formed, 2) it won't aid her in a battle, at least not when she is the one battling.


	5. Chapter 4

A/N: Sorry for taking so long to update. I've been swamped with finals and my birthday is coming up. (September 12th!) I hope you enjoy this chapter, I've been fixing up parts of previous chapters.

* * *

**Chapter Four**

**Caught**

* * *

Byakuya, as well as a few other captains, gave Kenpachi a withering look before returning his gaze upon the girl who was still in a heap on the ground before him, ignoring the worried and curious stares from the onlookers. He didn't understand why he felt such defeat emitting from the girl. If anything, Orihime should be proud. No one has ever battled against him in such a way. The amount of determination that Orihime exhibited in that short duel against him reminded Byakuya of Ichigo in an odd way. Suddenly he felt like he needed to train.

Byakuya knelt down in front of Orihime, finally letting go of her zanpakutō in the process, which gave a resonant thump as it hit the ground near Orihime's knees. He placed a hand on her shoulder, noticing her recoil slightly which gave him an odd pang of guilt. He studied her again for a brief moment before giving her some space and calling over Izuru Kira.

"Captain Kira, can you tend to her wounds?" he asked, his tone betraying a hint of guilt he felt. He immediately inwardly chastised himself for showing weakness, his eyes and demeanor growing even more cold as if it were possible.

The tone of Byakuya's voice seemed to grab Orihime's attention, it also didn't go unnoticed by the present captains, lieutenants, and some seated members that were present. Orihime was staring up at the noble who still remained in front of her, if not further away from her now. Her features set in pure confusion. He was guilty?

As Izuru and Isane made their way to the two, Izuru was watching the noble. He had seen the multitude of those who fainted within the division because of both their reiatsu. Their duel was careless and it was extremely uncharacteristic of Byakuya to engage in careless behavior. Izuru began to steel himself, pushing down any fear and uneasiness he held towards the noble. He knew he would need to have a chat with Byakuya, as well as a few others, because it was one of his duties now as a captain.

Once the healers were next to Orihime and Byakuya, Izuru and Isane helped Orihime stand in order to take her inside a building so she would be comfortable as they healed her and restored her reiatsu as well as tend to the noble's injuries. Izuru appointed his lieutenant to heal and take care of Orihime for the moment, as she was more than capable for the job. He pinned his stern, yet solemn gaze on the noble, who seemed nonplussed by Izuru's attempt at intimidation, as he motioned for Byakuya to at least sit down so he could be healed properly. Byakuya wouldn't, however. He kept standing there, his cold gaze flicking between Izuru and Orihime.

With a sigh, Izuru began to look over the stubborn noble anyways, as he was bleeding a lot. "You know, I think this has been the first time I've ever seen you, Byakuya Kuchiki, do something careless. What has gotten into you? You know better than duel like that in front of people who can't handle your immense reiatsu," he said in a low voice, not wanting to disturb Orihime and Isane. Izuru moved to grasp and inspect the noble's bleeding hand but Byakuya moved away from him.

"Go tend to Inoue, I'm fine," he said in a clipped tone. Before Izuru could respond, he was gone in a blur of shunpo. Izuru sighed in frustration, staring solemnly at the trail of blood he'd left on the wooden floor.

Izuru turned and watched as Isane was working on Orihime, he knew that she didn't require his aid since she was only drained of reiatsu and had superficial cuts all over her body. Isane looked up at him, and Izuru nodded at her before leaving to go talk to Rose and Shinji since he had a feeling they knew what happened to get those two to fight. Considering he knew that his former captain as well as Shinji were very curious about what Orihime Inoue's abilities as a soul reaper would be.

Sure enough, as he walked over to Rose and Shinji they were talking about Orihime's performance excitedly, though they both had bored expressions on their faces, there was something Izuru had come to realize in both mens' faces as excitement. Before he could ask what those two were up to, however, he saw a blur of red and suddenly Shinji was was on the ground, Hiyori on top of him.

"Damn it, Hiyori! Why did you kick me in the face?" Shinji all but whined, his bored expression quickly turning into one of annoyance as the petite girl on top of him grabbed his haori and proceeded to shake him violently. Izuru then noticed Momo running towards Shinji, a worried look on her face.

"Don't ask stupid questions, Shinji! Why aren't you doing your job, lazy ass? Get your ass back to the 5th division right now! Hinamori was forced to do all of your work today because you decided to shirk your duties as a captain," Hiyori screamed at him, growing more and more angry as Shinji seemed to not be paying attention to her. He was looking away with a finger in his ear, looking bored as ever. Hiyori finally lost it completely and began to slap him repeatedly with her yellow flip-flop. Momo watching them, poised as if she wants to help Shinji, but at a loss as to what she should do.

Love came over and plucked the petite vizard off Shinji, holding her writhing form in the air by the back of her red track suit. Hiyori began to growl in annoyance and pure rage. "Perhaps you should have accepted to be his second lieutenant, Hiyori. I don't know why his laziness bothers you so much when you have nothing to do with his division." Love, and the rest of the vizards, knew the reason she was so upset and why she wouldn't accept another position in the Gotei 13. Hiyori grew attached to Momo, most likely because of her easy-going, friendly nature, and probably because they were both effected by Aizen's regime. Hiyori didn't like when Shinji left the work to Momo, even though his lieutenant never complained.

"You know why I didn't accept that dumbass's offer, you dumbass!" Hiyori said angrily, finally having settled down enough to communicate in her own way. Crossing her arms over her chest and pointedly looking away from Momo, "I hate soul reapers," she ground out between her teeth. Ignoring the hurt look that crossed Momo's featured for the briefest of moments. The lieutenant was used to Hiyori's personality by now, though it still hurt when she actually voiced how she hated soul reapers.

Hiyori was now getting upset that she was still dangling in mid air, so she growled in annoyance before managing to swing herself up and wrench herself free, crouching on Love's arm. Hiyori moved to kick Love in the face for treating her like that but unfortunately for her he was faster. Love grabbed her foot and now she found herself dangling upside-down.

"We've had this talk before, Hiyori. I think you should spend some time with me and Lisa until you calm down," Love said, nonplussed by Hiyori's behavior. They walked away, Lisa flanking him, clearly not caring about the situation as she had her face planted in a smutty graphic novel, Hiyori still dangling upside-down with her arms crossed and her left eyebrow twitching as they made their way to the 8th division.

Izuru stared after them, dumbstruck. He would never get used to Hiyori's temperament. Izuru's ears caught the sound of a sad sigh and he rested his gaze upon Momo, his long time friend since back when they were in the academy. He studied her for a moment, noticing the barely visible frown set upon her lips. Shinji, who was now standing, placed a hand upon his petite lieutenant's head. This grabbed her attention and Momo turned slightly to smile fondly at her captain. Izuru found himself smiling as well, he really liked the fact that Shinji and Momo trusted each other and possessed a good, healthy bond. _Momo Hinamori deserves nothing less._

"Rose, Captain Hirako, judging by your pleased and excited looks earlier you know what happened to get Captain Kuchiki and Orihime Inoue to fight. Orihime looked particularly bent on killing Kuchiki when I showed up," Izuru found himself finally saying, needing to get some answers. He stared at his former captain expectantly with his ever solemn blue eyes.

Rose and Shinji shared a look, both appearing bored but Izuru didn't miss the mirth that was held in both of their eyes. "We were toying with Orihime, trying to see what she was capable of when our favorite nobleman came for a visit," Rose said airily, as if it should be obvious. "Then Shinji had a magnificent idea! We got them to duel, since we wanted to see our princess's zanpakutō, though she never did end up using bankai... It wasn't hard, Orihime even challenged him herself in the end. She wished to prove herself."

"Our princess is quite the strong one, taking on little Byakuya with only her shikai," Shinji chimed in, giving a wistful sigh. "I feel as though I've fallen in love with her all over again," he added in a sing-song voice. Next to him, Momo was blushing. Seems like she never got used to this part of her captain's personality.

"It's too bad we didn't get to witness her bankai. Orihime's zanpakutō is very pretty, seems Rukia has some competition."

Izuru sighed, he knew that often times Shinji and Rose caused mischief when left unattended.

"Thank you, Rose. I don't think anyone will be seeing my bankai any time soon. I do possess one, but... It's not fully formed and certainly isn't offensive, at least not yet," came the tired voice of Orihime, who was now standing to Izuru's left with Isane just behind them both.

Orihime rubbed her eyes, "I take full responsibility for any inconveniences I caused. I felt the need to prove myself to Captain Kuchiki. I get the feeling he thinks I'm utterly useless..." she trailed off, looking for her zanpakutō which was laying on the ground where Byakuya had dropped it.

"Don't worry about it, Orihime. I also wouldn't worry about Byakuya thinking you're useless."

Orihime, who had found her zanpakutō and was studying the amount of blood on the blade with a frown set upon her features, turned her attention to Rose again, her frown deepening. "What do you mean? I lost against him."

Rose was now smiling like a Cheshire cat. "Technically yes, but you did manage a few things that I don't think he's ever encountered before in a battle. You do possess a rather unique ability. Byakuya seemed rather impressed by your performance by the time it ended."

Orihime seemed lost in thought at that. She didn't recall such an expression from Byakuya, he had seemed more on the lines of upset than anything, but then again he was always hard to read. Orihime looked down at her sword again, her frown deepening. "Speaking of Byakuya, where did he go? Did you heal him already, Izuru?" she inquired, staring at the solemn blonde, her eyebrows set in worry.

"Um, well... He refused to let me heal his wounds, insisting that I heal you instead. Captain Kuchiki just left like his wounds were nothing. To be honest, he was worse off than you," Izuru said, running a hand through his hair. "I don't understand anything that guy does."

"You and me both, Izuru..." Orihime trailed off, finally wiping her zanpakutō clean, using the sleeve of her shihakushō before sheathing it. "That idiot," she muttered under her breath. She turned to look at her captain. "Would you mind if I took off a little bit early today, Rose? I feel obligated to go look after a certain noble."

Rose inclined his head, and at that Orihime gave a low bow before taking off in the direction of the Kuchiki Manor in a blur of shunpo, passing everyone else on the way.

* * *

Orihime stormed through the Kuchiki Manor, following Byakuya's reiatsu. In her haste, she almost ran over several servants. Orihime had barely paused to apologize before setting off again, causing the servants to gawk at her rudely before returning to their duties. Orihime didn't notice their rude stares, she was on a mission. She was responsible for the injuries she inflicted upon Byakuya, and it had worried her that he neglected treatment, even if they weren't life threatening.

Once she was at her destination, Orihime stared at the shōji door that lead to Byakuya's rooms. She suddenly felt nervous, but then she squashed it down, swallowing the lump in her throat, and taking on an air of confidence, she slid the screen back. Orihime had been poised to say something but she lost her words. Before her was Byakuya, his back towards her. He only had on his black hakama, revealing the shallow cuts on either side of his waist, he was in the middle of attempting to wrap them in a white medical cloth. She noticed he had already cleaned away the blood, and wrapped his left hand. His ruined captain's haori, shitagi, and kasode in a pile at his feet with a blood stained cloth.

Byakuya stopped what he was doing and peered over his shoulder though his long, dark hair. He trained his gaze on Orihime, who he noted was staring at him as if she has never seen a half dressed man before. "You're drooling," he quipped in an attempt to snap her out of her reverie. Which seemed to work as she blinked and proceeded to don a sheepish look. "What are you doing in my rooms? It's rude not to ask for permission first. I could have been naked," he was fully facing her now, holding the wrap in his hand. Byakuya stepped closer to her, fixing his steel eyes on hers. "Please refrain from doing that again, Inoue."

Orihime's eyes widened. She caught sight of the thousands of small faded scars on his torso, creating something close to a web. Before either of them realized it, she gingerly traced some of the scars on his ribcage with the tips of her fingers, slowly moving up to the burn mark on the right side of his chest which was from earlier. Byakuya merely quirked an eyebrow at her, not bothering to remove her from his person like he normally would have. "I don't like to repeat myself," he settled on saying. Another attempt to gain her attention.

Orihime just found herself asking, "Is this from the Quincy war? It looks similar to-" she was cut off with a curt nod.

"You're aware that early on in the war they were able to steal bankai, right? These scars are from Senbonzakura," Byakuya said as he turned away from her, sighing. "I don't think you came here to ask me about the past," he said pointedly.

"Well, I... You made sure I got healed, but you refused treatment. I'm responsible for injuring you, so please let me heal you, Captain Kuchiki."

Byakuya wondered why this girl was seemingly worried about his miniscule injuries. He had been through much worse and lived, he knew she was aware of that. He closed his eyes and gave a slow nod, before settling down on a cushion in the room. He would appease Orihime.

Orihime took this as a sign that he would let her heal him, and so she moved to settle down on a cushion next to him. She grabbed his left hand and proceeded to heal that first after removing the bandage.

Byakuya watched her work, training his eyes on the pale, warm light emitting from her hands. He realized that her reiatsu was always warmer than others, and he felt comforted by that fact.

"Why did you try to kill me earlier? Am I that insufferable to be around?"

Byakuya was taken aback by her words, sure he thought her mildly troublesome but he wouldn't kill her over it. "I tried to kill you?" he asked quizzically. Then he remembered that he had trapped her using his Senbonzakura Kageyoshi after she attempted to exploit his weakness. "You're talking about when I trapped you. You honestly thought I would kill you in a duel? I was intrigued that you figured out and tried to exploit my weakness, so I responded by pushing you a bit."

Orihime frowned. It hadn't crossed her mind that he was pushing her in their duel. She felt bad for her actions against him after that point. Though he did succeed, since she was forced to use Seifuku no Hikari which she hadn't used against a zanpakutō like Byakuya's before. Now she knew that she had the ability to pin down zanpakutō.

Byakuya watched her intently and then decided to speak again. "You probably would have had a stronger chance at succeeding with that type of attack method if I had never crossed paths against that fullbringer Tsukishima." He noted how her eyes seemed to darken at the mention of that man. "I know you are aware of what he was capable of at the time. Thanks to Tsukishima I realized there are methods I can develop that potentially use my weakness to my advantage, which you experienced earlier."

"I'm sorry for losing it against you. I should have known you were trying to push me to see what I'm capable of. I suppose it's a good thing that Seifuku no Hikari uses up a lot of my reiatsu, otherwise that Byakurai spell I had cast at the end could have done more to you," Orihime murmured, letting go of his left hand which was now completely healed short of a red line on his palm which would fade over time. She leaned forward to begin healing his left side which had a deeper cut than the right. "I'm so foolish and it's all because I stopped trusting and seeing only the good in those around me. I'm an idiot for thinking that coming here and seeking a high ranking position was a good idea. How can I aspire to be a captain when I can't even trust?"

"You're correct in thinking you're currently unsuitable for a captain position. Even if you had done exceedingly well during the test, I doubt you would have received the captain position," said Byakuya. Orihime's brow furrowed, of course the noble would give it to her straight.

Byakuya continued, deeming further explanation necessary. "You're not accustomed to our world. You lived in the world of the living throughout your training instead of going through the rounds like most others do. It typically takes a soul reaper many years to become worthy of a captain position, rarely does anyone become one without at least a few years as a seated member of a division. That blood thirsty brute, Kenpachi Zaraki was an exception. He went through one of the few ways of becoming a captain, which was to defeat the captain of the 11th with 200 people there to witness. Not many use this method, so most captains are referred as needed."

Orihime blinked. This was possibly the longest he has ever spoken to her, though what he said made her even more sad. She truly was an idiot for thinking she had a chance at a different life. The more Byakuya spoke the more she realized how many mistakes she has made since she accepted Urahara's offer. Orihime mentally slapped herself which made her visibly wince. Byakuya caught the expression that flitted across her features and raised a curious eyebrow at her. It dawned on her then. Byakuya never said she couldn't be a captain in the future. He more or less told her she needed to truly immerse herself into the soul reaper world. Did that mean he approved of her being here? She looked at him with open curiosity.

As if reading Orihime's mind, Byakuya spoke again. "You have been told that you possess potential. Personally, I didn't fully see it until our duel earlier. I was impressed with your quick thinking, and you managed to surprise me a couple of times. The lieutenant position you were given is something you should use to your advantage. Get fully used to our way of life and what is expected of you and surely enough you will truly qualify for the position you seek. Izuru Kira doesn't wish to be in the 4th. His rightful place is by Ōtoribashi's side. Everyone knows that." Byakuya was gazing down at the girl who was closer than he realized, their faces closer than he'd like. Instead of pulling away, he let his gaze wander about her person. He caught the fading red lines left over of her injuries that rested upon her cheek and neck. Before he could stop himself, he brought up his right hand and traced the mark on her cheek with his fingertips.

Orihime, who had already started blushing when she realized he had complimented her was now turning a vivid shade of red as Byakuya touched her so tenderly. For a moment, she was caught in his scent of cherry blossoms and musk and as she stared into his molten silver pools, she swore she saw the ice king vanish. Unfortunately the icy demeanor was back in place once the shōji door began to slide open. Byakuya righted himself, causing Orihime to shrink away from him, too embarrassed to turn and see who had interrupted them, although she was slightly glad that they had.

Rukia stood there, she had been about to tell Byakuya something but then she caught the familiar dark orange hair and she also noticed Byakuya was half naked. She quirked an eyebrow at Byakuya who was staring her down and feigning nonchalance as if it were normal to be half naked in front of Orihime. "Well, hello you two."

At that, Orihime practically jumped out of her skin. She was hoping it was a servant, and then internally chastised herself for not feeling her approach sooner. She moved to try and escape, afraid of the situation she was now in. Unfortunately for her, Orihime was stopped by a firm grip on her wrist. Orihime was surprised and managed to look at Byakuya who was still staring at Rukia, he raised a challenging eyebrow at his sister. She didn't see Rukia's response but she took that it wasn't particularly good by the way his mouth was set in a thin line that screamed irritation.

"Since you rudely dumped all of the work on Renji today, _brother_, I'm going to go eat dinner with him and make sure everything gets done. Carry on," she said, roughly closing the shōji and leaving. Rukia would get back at Byakuya for messing with Renji again.

Byakuya sighed, and let go of Orihime's wrist. He would pay for his laziness. He knew Rukia still kept in contact with the vile were-cat, Yoruichi Shihōin. Undoubtedly would Rukia simply ask that woman to come torment him. It was because of her that he no longer wore anything on his person that was easily removed, especially hair pieces that he was fond of.

Byakuya looked down, examining his wounds. He was healed enough that he wouldn't further trouble the girl with minor things. Byakuya looked at Orihime, who was picking at invisible lint on her hakama and obi, avoiding eye contact. He ran a hand through his long, dark hair as he picked up the wrappings from earlier and began to re-wrap his left hand with fresh bandages, just to protect it for a couple days.

"I-I suppose I should go apologize to Renji since I got him in trouble," said Orihime, needing an excuse to leave.

Once Byakuya was done with his hand, he attempted to do the same with his waist again. "I wouldn't trouble yourself. Abarai doesn't know and it's best to leave him mad at me," he said in a casual and bored tone.

Orihime spared a glance at Byakuya and was amused that he was failing at wrapping his waist. "Here, let me," she said, holding her hand out for the wrappings. Once she had them she began wrapping him up as Byakuya held his arms out of the way. Once she was done with that she tended to the burn mark on his chest and then covered that as well.

All fixed up, Byakuya moved to his closet to retrieve a yukata to change into. Orihime fought the urge to laugh when he opened the closet, revealing dozens of identical captain's haori, shitagi, kasode, hakama, and what ever else he wore. Byakuya was pulling out a dark blue yukata and matching sanjuku obi when he heard a particularly unladylike snort. He turned to see Orihime with a delicate hand over her mouth, clearly trying not to laugh. He sighed, knowing the reason. Rukia had the same reaction when she found out about his spare clothes, which he didn't really understand why it was funny. It was practical in his mind, especially since the late Head Captain Yamamoto was upset when he and Kenpachi lost their captain's haori in Hueco Mundo. Byakuya made sure to have back-ups since.

He stared at Orihime icily. "Please leave so I may change, Inoue."

Orihime merely nodded before making to leave. She began to slide open the shōji, and then caught sight of a servant who was about to let Byakuya know dinner was almost ready. The servant, a young woman, looked between Byakuya, who was still topless, and Orihime, who was blushing again, and gave Orihime a knowing, suggestive look before schooling her features into a trained expressionless mask. "Dinner is about to be served, Lord Kuchiki," came a soft, feminine voice. "Miss Inoue," the servant added with a curt nod in her direction before departing.

Orihime was blushing furiously, she quickly left Byakuya's rooms and began to close the shōji when she heard, "Wait for me, we'll go to dinner together, _Miss_ Inoue." Orihime stiffened and then hastily closed the shōji the rest of the way. Did he tease her just now? This man was utterly confusing, she didn't know how to deal with him. Currently Orihime just wanted to hide somewhere, she was so embarrassed.

* * *

A/N: Please don't forget to comment and critique! I need to know how my story is going so far. Next chapter Orihime will be visiting the world of the living and I have a few surprises set up just for that! Thank you to everyone who has read and commented on previous chapters. I love you!


	6. Chapter 5

A/N: Prepare yourself for the longest chapter yet. This contains my attempt at filling you in with my envisioned world of Bleach 15 years after the war. Enjoy, my lovely readers.

I post this chapter as a birthday present to myself!

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Quincy, Substitute Soul Reaper, and Hollows oh my! … and possibly, maybe, a cat too.**

* * *

It was a bright and sunny Saturday morning and Orihime was standing in front of a senkaimon with Byakuya behind her, seeing her off. She had waited several days to finally go to the world of the living to talk to Uryū Ishida, which Rose had consented that she could go today. Though part of her wasn't all too keen returning, knowing that she'd much rather avoid a certain blue haired arrancar. Orihime turned slightly to give a sidelong gaze towards Byakuya, who she continued to feel awkward around after the day of the duel. Granted he seemed to have changed his attitude around her, and every once in a while she would catch him looking at her.

Orihime gave a small smile and nodded as a way of goodbye and thank you before walking through the senkaimon, her newly assigned jigokuchō leading the way. Byakuya watched her go and then made to go for a walk around the grounds of the Kuchiki Manor.

"So, I hear you're getting cozy with Orihime Inoue. My little Byakuya is finally growing up," came the all too familiar male voice of the vile creature Byakuya loathed the most. Fighting the massive urge to retaliate, Byakuya merely continued on his walk, ignoring the mischievous black cat following him up on the roof of the Manor.

Yoruichi tutted before flash-stepping onto Byakuya's shoulder, placing a small black paw on his cheek. "Hey, don't ignore me. Also, it's nothing to be ashamed of, Byakuya. Orihime is a fine, talented, young woman, I bet even Kenpachi drools over her, and we both know the only thing he loves is sinking his zanpakutō into the flesh of anyone who challenges him!"

Byakuya halted mid-step, suddenly feeling nauseous as visuals of Kenpachi and Orihime swam through his thoughts. It wasn't Orihime that caused this reaction, but the mere thought of Kenpachi with anyone that did. He swatted at the pesky cat on his shoulder, but it didn't work because Yoruichi just appeared on his other shoulder, nuzzling her feline cheek against his, not necessarily as a sign of affection, but more like she was teasing him. This was going to be a very long day for a certain noble.

* * *

Orihime stepped out of the senkaimon in front of Kisuke Urahara's shop, suddenly feeling like she was weaker than before. Then she remembered that lieutenants and captains of the Gotei 13 get placed under a power limit so as to not effect those who are still living. She sighed, not liking feeling weak.

"Well, well, well. Look who has come back. Miss me already, _Princess_?"

Orihime turned to see Grimmjow swaggering over to her, and immediately she was filled with dread. Not because he could hurt her physically, but he played her all too well emotionally before. "I told you not to call me that, Grimmjow. Now stay away from me or I'll finally end your existence," she said, in a very uncharacteristic acidic tone.

Grimmjow merely smirked, his vivid blue eyes gleaming. He was clearly enjoying the effect he had on her, coming to stand too close for comfort in front of Orihime. Her right hand twitched, itching to grab her zanpakutō and end it once and for all. She hadn't truly hated an arrancar until Grimmjow became a significant part of her life, a part she wished never happened the way it had.

Grimmjow bent down and brought his face next to hers, his lips ghosting over her ear. The feeling of his closeness and his hot breath against her flesh made her shudder. "I remember when you loved when I called you Princess, and the times when you willingly op-" before he could finish, Grimmjow was put to sleep under the bakudō spell, inemuri, and Orihime's right hand was halted by a firm grip as it was a fraction of an inch away from her zanpakutō.

Orihime and Grimmjow's relationship wasn't always like this. After the war ended, Grimmjow decided to stay in the world of the living, claiming that Urahara still needed to hold up his end of the deal for his cooperation. Urahara, however, somehow trapped him in a special gigai that only Urahara can free him of and merely put him to work in the shop. Since the gigai ate up his reiatsu constantly, he was now no stronger than a typical human. A few years down the line, Orihime finally fell under the efforts of Grimmjow trying to seduce her, but after a couple years being "together" Orihime found out the truth. He had used her, hoping that if he showed he was capable of acting like a human, and won the favor of Orihime whose opinion mattered to those at the shop, that he'd be free of the gigai and in soul society with Ichigo. The plan obviously backfired when he lost his patience.

Orihime blinked, now all too aware of the tears brimming her eyes. She looked up and saw Urahara, who had pushed Grimmjow over to keep him from falling onto Orihime and left him on the ground in front of the shop, he motioned for Orihime to come inside. "I'm sorry about that. Would've done it sooner had I known you were coming back. I take it things didn't go well?"

Orihime bit her lip, following Urahara into the shop. She obviously couldn't tell him what happened. "The head captain placed me as a lieutenant of the 3rd division for now so I can truly immerse myself into the life of a soul reaper. Izuru Kira and I will switch places eventually," she said, hoping that it worked. What she had said wasn't technically a lie.

Urahara gave her a sidelong look, his fan now covering the lower half of his face, a sign that Orihime had come to know that he was either up to something or knew something. Orihime swallowed the lump in her throat. "Well, why are you here then? Shouldn't you be helping Rose in Soul Society?"

"Yes, but I came here to talk to Uryū. I've missed him," she said, which again wasn't necessarily a lie.

"Ah, shall I fetch your gigai then?" Urahara inquired, his eyes twinkling.

Orihime nodded, and watched his retreating figure, sighing. Then she found herself sandwiched between two massive bodies, in what she might guess is a hug. "Oh, I'm so glad you're back!" Tessai said, blubbering like a baby. "Welcome back, Orihime!" Hachigen greeted happily.

"Can't... breathe..." Orihime managed, and was soon relieved of the "hug."

"We're sorry, Orihime. We've just missed you so much," Tessai said, still teary. Hachigen was nodding fervently.

Orihime smiled. Leave it to these two to cheer her up. "I've only been gone a couple weeks, guys. Though it is very good to see you both again. I've missed you dearly," she said, hugging them both. They returned the hug, this time a _bit_ more gentle. "I promise to keep visiting, it's not like I'm gone forever!"

Urahara reappeared with her specially designed gigai. Orihime was glad to see that it still had on the clothes she dressed her gigai in rather than some perverted thing she had witnessed on gigai before. Urahara handed it to her and Orihime immediately began to slip into her gigai. It was always strange being in one, especially hers since it didn't look exactly like Orihime. Even though methods of hiding reiatsu were technically illegal, her gigai had this function since she wished to hide from Tatsuki. She wished to no longer interfere with the living, and even kept her contact with Uryū to a minimum. Tatsuki specifically camped the area around Urahara's shop after Orihime's death, and she couldn't take Tatsuki being so heartbroken. So in her mind she thought it would be best to part ways to let Tatsuki move on and live her life, as much as it killed them both.

Orihime, now fully situated inside her gigai, looked almost unrecognizable. She was a more petite build, though she remained the same height. Her hair, though sill long, was now a silver blonde color, parted in the middle with bangs. Her eyes were blue, but her facial features remained the same for the most part. Her outfit consisted of a simple pale blue dress that came down to mid-thigh, and a long, cream button-up sweater over it, buttoned halfway, the sleeves slightly too long, covering most of her hands. She wore plain flats that matched her sweater. Over all she looked even more innocent than she used to, which was hard to believe. Some of her gigai's attributes were modeled after her zanpakutō spirit, Ten'nin, which was Yoruichi's idea after witnessing her during the fights Orihime went through to achieve bankai six years prior.

After deciding she needed to braid her long hair and tying it off, having the thick braid rest on her right shoulder, Orihime was handed a denreishinki in the newest model Urahara had developed apparently during her stay in Soul Society, and gikongan. She stuffed both in her sweater pockets.

"Have fun today, Orihime. I'll make sure Grimmjow isn't around when you come back," Urahara said, waving his fan in front of his face. Orihime smiled and nodded, waving at everyone. As she left the shop, she made sure to steer clear of the prone form of Grimmjow, just in case.

* * *

After a long leisurely walk through Karakura Town, Orihime was standing in front of Uryū Ishida's clothing store, Stolz which meant pride in German. She smiled, moving to enter the store. Orihime walked through the store, taking in all of the types of clothing Uryū designed himself. Things ranging from common clothing items that are in current fashion, to sweet and gothic lolita dresses, and even visual kei. Uryū also offered to do commission work. His store had gotten popular since he opened it nine years ago with his wife Shiori, though at the time they were engaged.

Orihime managed to spot Uryū behind the counter, next to the register. He seemed to be going over something important as he pushed up his glasses, a habit he still retained. Orihime stood in front of the counter, next to a customer who was currently being serviced by the worker manning the register. The tall man dressed in visual kei with mismatching eyes gave her a curious look before returning his attention on the customer. Uryū still hadn't seemed to notice her.

"So, I see you finally incorporated buttons into your designs. Shiori finally wore you down, huh?" Orihime said in a playful tone. The mentioning of buttons and his wife's name immediately grabbed the Quincy's attention.

Uryū blinked, and then a massive smile stretched across his face. "Ah, in fact her argument became compelling after several years of her complaining about my designs not looking right without them. Of course I finally submitted to her on the premise that she's the one that sews those god awful things on the garments. Shiori was only too happy to comply," he said cheekily and they both laughed which gained them some attention of the patrons in the store, and the man at the register next to Uryū was glancing at them curiously. "It's been a while, Orihime. What's the occasion?" he said, his sapphire eyes twinkling as he tucked a rogue strand of raven hair behind his ear. Orihime caught sight of his quincy cross bracelet peaking through the cuff of his plain white dress shirt.

"Well, I came to talk to you. Shouldn't that be obvious?" she quipped, smiling. She was proud of herself for hiding the wreck she truly was underneath. Granted she did that well enough for fifteen years, or possibly even before she died.

Uryū seemed to regard her for a moment before nodding and turning towards the man next to him. "Hei, can I trust you to look after the store while I talk to my long time friend in my office for a while?" The man, apparently his name Hei, gave a curt nod and then looked at Orihime strangely for a brief moment. It must seem funny to that man, hearing her being addressed as a long time friend when she didn't look older than twenty and Uryū was thirty two. "Right... Let's go to my office, Orihime," he said, leading the way into the back of the store.

Orihime sat in a comfortable chair in front of Uryū's desk and he sat down in his chair behind the desk. She caught sight of a picture in a white frame on his desk and picked it up to examine its contents. The picture was of a little boy, no older than six, staring at her with the beautiful sapphire eyes, his hair a silvery blue. He looked very serious for a little boy holding a sketch pad under one arm, and he was standing slightly in front of a little girl around the same age with brown hair and bright amber eyes, a big goofy grin on her face, holding flowers up towards the camera.

"Your son, Kō looks more and more like-"

"Don't say it! I get it all the time. He looks like Ryūken. I get it," he said, sighing in defeat.

Orihime laughed, still staring at the little girl. "Well, from what you've told me about Kō before, he takes after you in Shiori in talent, has he started quincy training yet? Who is the girl in this picture?"

"We decided to wait until Kō was about eight to start training, for now he goes to Tatsuki and Keigo's dojo and that is Hana, Tatsuki and Keigo's little girl. She's slightly younger than Kō, but they're still inseparable. In fact the only person who seems to get any emotion out of him is Hana. She loves it when Kō smiles. Still haven't managed to capture that, he always senses when Shiori or I snap a photo. Those two are polar opposites, and Kō is rather protective of Hana. Shiori and Tatsuki are practically planning their wedding already," Uryū said in an exasperated tone.

Orihime smiled, imagining the mothers planning their kids' wedding. She felt a pang of longing, but she reminded herself that it would never happen. "Does Hana possess spiritual awareness like her parents?"

"Well, she hasn't shown any signs yet. It's hard to tell. We've all made sure to keep that stuff from her so as to not influence," he said thoughtfully, and then added, "You know, Tatsuki once told me that she named Hana after you. Hana means flower, which in this case I suppose is referencing your past abilities which were flower themed. She misses you very much, Orihime. Perhaps you sh-"

"I can't, you know I can't. Tatsuki needs to live her life like a normal human being. We've had this talk before and my answer will always remain the same."

Uryū gave her a sad look, watching her set the picture frame back on his desk where it sat previously. He sighed and decided to change topics, schooling his face into a more serious expression, reminiscent of his youth. "Alright. So I'm guessing you didn't come to talk to me about my family."

Orihime looked away, training her eyes on nothing in particular. "You're correct. I came to ask you about my death."

Uryū frowned. "You mean all this time you don't remember? I knew something was off but I always thought it was that you had died, not that you didn't remember. You should have talked to me or Ichigo sooner, Orihime," he chided. He noticed how her facial expression darkened at the mention of Ichigo. "You don't... You mean you-"

"The parts I do remember of that night haunt me, and for the past fifteen years I thought Ichigo killed me. I wanted to get stronger and avenge my death no matter what. For a while, though, my intentions for getting stronger as a soul reaper truly switched into achieving a captain position thinking that if I just had a different life I could forget, but after seeing Ichigo again in soul society earlier this week... I-I almost killed him, Uryū."

Uryū was flabbergasted, he never thought Orihime believe Ichigo of all people would kill her. "No offense, Orihime, but Ichigo isn't exactly easy to kill and I've felt your reiatsu before... You couldn't possibly..." he trailed off, staring at Orihime with wide eyes.

Orihime finally turned her gaze on the quincy, heaving a sigh before speaking again. "I know that, or rather the more rational part of my brain does. It doesn't change the fact that I was literally an inch away from burying my zanpakutō deep within his chest. The more I think about it the more I realize that he wants me to kill him. Ichigo wouldn't even fight me back, he just dodged all of my attacks until he let me pin him down with kidō. Would you know anything about that?"

Uryū rubbed his face with a hand, looking away from Orihime. He nodded and then began to recant everything he could about the night she died and why Ichigo seems all too willing to die by her hand.

* * *

It was mid afternoon and Orihime found herself walking back to the shop to drop off her gigai. Staring numbly ahead, she was oblivious to the constant beeping coming from her denreishinki. Uryū's words echoing in her head nonstop.

"_... Ichigo would never have allowed you to fall to your death, Orihime, but I saw with my own eyes that you let go. You sacrificed yourself so he could dispatch the quincy and arrancar that were attacking you both. I spoke to Ichigo about it after the war when he had a melt down when everything finally ended. He told me that because you said that it was either you both died or you did. Due to the rain, he was slipping over the edge of the building and you knew that. Your actions were both a blessing and a curse to him, and from the sounds of it he's never forgiven himself..."_

Orihime fought with every fiber of her being to keep the tears at bay. Why had she immediately assumed Ichigo would have killed her? From what Uryū had told her, it seemed true that she would've gladly sacrificed herself to make sure Ichigo succeeded back then.

"_... If anything, Orihime, you should have been blaming me all this time. It was my fault that you ended up in that situation and the memory of watching you fall to your death has haunted me. I-I wish I had done something to save you, there was a chance that I could have..."_

Orihime didn't know how to feel about Uryū's confession. Though for one thing, she clearly misjudged him all this time, thinking she could trust him completely, more than anyone else. Perhaps her betrayal was truly towards Uryū but she thought it had to do with Ichigo because his face was one of the only things she could remember. She sniffled and then sighed, this was such a mess.

It was then that Orihime finally heard the frantic beeping of her denreishinki and felt the reiatsu of hollows near by. Wait, not near by, basically on top of her. Orihime froze as she realized that two hollows were looming over her from behind. They seemed stupid and fighting over who would get to consume her soul. She quickly popped a gikongan into her mouth, separating her true self from her gigai. She swiftly ordered the mod soul to go to Urahara's shop and drew her zanpakutō.

The idiot hollows finally noticed that she wasn't a mere human, but it only seemed to make them even more mad with hunger. Before Orihime could attack and kill them, she caught a flash of black in her peripheral vision. The figure had flash-stepped onto one of the hollow's back and swiftly drove their zanpakutō, which she noticed was in shikai form, into the back of its head before blurring and doing the same to the other hollow. The figure gracefully jumped and landed in front of Orihime.

"Hey! I thought you were better at detection and all that crap than me. Honestly, I don't know where your head is sometimes, Orihime," came the gruff voice of Karin Kurosaki, who was the new substitute soul reaper. She was taller than Orihime by a few inches and dressed similarly to Soi Fon or Yoruichi, which suited her slender athletic build perfectly, with the difference of a black scarf wrapped around her neck and the lower half of her face. She looked like an assassin. Karin moved the scarf from around her face, revealing a lopsided grin. "I don't know how you managed to let dumb and dumber sneak up on you, but whatever. Say, why didn't you tell me you were back?"

"I came back for a day just to talk to Uryū about something important, it wasn't exactly planned," Orihime said, now feeling nervous. She turned her gaze on the five foot long sword in Karin's hand, straight and narrow. "How's your bankai training progressing, Karin?"

Karin blanched and also turned her gaze onto the shikai form of her zanpakutō, her eyes glinting with anger. "Ugh, don't remind me of that. Jaaku-shi won't let me access bankai until, as he puts it, I fully accept death. I asked Urahara about it and he told me that he thinks Jaaku-shi wants me to forsake my living self and become a true soul reaper, as I am right now I am unworthy. _Bastard_," growled Karin. She irritatedly flicked the long, black hair of her high ponytail off her shoulder and roughly sheathed her zanpakutō after it reverted back to sealed form, a katana with a black hilt and no guard. "I'm not doing that any time soon, you hear me Jaaku-shi!" Karin was glaring intently at her sheathed zanpakutō, which clearly didn't respond back, at least not in a way Orihime could hear. Karin's eyes darkened dangerously after a brief moment, her hand twitching, itching to just abandon her zapakutō once and for all.

"Uh... Hey, Karin. Settle down, alright? It's not like you need your bankai. You're still very talented with just shikai and you're gifted in hakuda. Yoruichi had thought I was good at it but then you came along," Orihime feigned an air of sullenness as she said the last part, training her lips into a false pout.

Karin's mood instantly switched and she gave Orihime a massive shark-like grin, apparently forgetting her frustration with her zapakutō. "You got a point. Though the only thing I can't best you in is kidō. You're like the God of kidō, I swear. You got Tessai and Hachi fawning over your kidō skills. Makes me jealous sometimes. Then again, kidō expertise skipped a generation in my family. You'd think Ichigo, Yuzu, and I would be good at it what with us being a part of the Shiba clan, born between a captain class soul reaper and a quincy... Ichigo only recently achieved reiatsu control and minor kidō though his spells tend to blow up, I'm the one with highest talent in reiatsu control and kidō, short of my father of course. Then there is Yuzu who barely has spiritual awareness. Our family is weird. Hopefully Yuzu and Jinta's little girl turns out somewhat normal in either end of the spectrum."

Orihime smiled, happy that she was able to pull Karin away from a tantrum. Her zanpakutō being death themed makes her progress difficult at times, typically steering her into a more positive frame of mind with compliments was best. Orihime's stomach churned, a pang of guilt arising when Karin mentioned her brother. She needed to find a way to visit Ichigo and apologize, once she sorted everything that was going through her mind. Currently, Karin was a welcomed distraction.

"Hey... Speaking of Ichigo, how can I find him?"

Karin's brow furrowed, thinking Orihime's question strange. Orihime never expressed interest in seeing her brother before, typically avoided the topic of visiting him, though she never knew why exactly. "Yoruichi and Urahara, besides Kukaku, are the only ones who know where he is at all times. He's been stubbornly avoiding the Royal Guard recruitment for years now, so he changes location monthly within the outskirts of the Seireitei, and even outside the Rukongai. Even I only see him a couple times a year when Kukaku and Yoruichi talk him into visiting the Shiba clan house. Every time I ask if you want to join me, you have something else planned. Why the sudden interest, Orihime?"

Orihime didn't know how to answer, and so she began to worry her bottom lip between her teeth nervously. She sighed and turned away, staring up at the sky. She noticed it was getting late and there was one thing she wanted to do before returning to the soul society. "There is something I need to do so we can both move on, so we can both be at peace," she murmured, deciding to be truthful as she was still avoiding looking at Karin. Karin had reached out a hand to grab Orihime to demand an explanation, but her hand only grasped at air.

* * *

Orihime decided to give Tatsuki and Keigo's dojo a visit, just to see how they were fairing with her own eyes. She felt she needed this, even if she didn't make her presence known. She came upon the place of destination quickly, having flash-stepped all the way there, tracing Tatsuki's faint reiatsu signature. She looked down at the dojo from atop a neighboring building, seeing there wasn't really anyone around since it must have been near closing time.

Orihime hopped down and began wandering the property, keeping her senses on high alert and her reiatsu on strict control. She didn't want to let Tatsuki or Keigo know she was there. She was rounding a corner near the entrance when she heard loud giggling. Orihime immediately hid behind the building, peering over the corner. She saw a small girl with brown hair, wearing a white martial arts uniform tied by a white belt with sneakers on her feet. She noticed the girl was carrying a pink stuffed bunny with one arm while she kicked a soccer ball around outside the dojo. Orihime knew this was Hana just by the smile on the girls face as it was massive and contagious, the same as in the picture. Orihime even found herself smiling at the sight of the girl having fun kicking the ball around. She wondered where Tatsuki and Keigo were.

Hana ended up kicking the ball in Orihime's direction, and began to pursue it. Orihime stayed where she was, willing to risk her visit. She was curious if the girl possessed spiritual awareness like her parents, and she found herself hoping Hana did.

As Hana reached the ball, she suddenly became aware of a strangely dressed woman in the shade that the dojo created. She seemed to have forgotten the ball for a moment as she moved over to Orihime. "Hi!" Hana said with a bright smile, waving her hand. "You're dressed strangely, if you're here for practice you're late, the dojo is closed for the day. What's your name?"

Orihime blinked for a moment and then smiled fondly at the girl, crouching down to get on the same level as Hana. "Oh, I shall come back another time then. My name is Orihime, what's yours?"

Hana clumsily pushed her bangs out of her eyes before answering. "My name is Hana! It's nice to meet you, Orihime," she paused, her delicate brow furrowing in thought. "My mommy has a shrine picture of a girl who looks like you, she prays to her every morning. I don't know her name though," she finished, pushing her bangs out of her eyes again.

Orihime deliberated for a moment before reaching into her obi and pulling out a small box that contained her old hairpins. She showed them to Hana. "Would you like these, Hana? They will help keep your hair out of your eyes."

Hana nodded fervently. "Yes, please!"

Orihime giggled softly, fixing Hana's bangs before securing them off to the side with the hairpins. "There, all done. They look very pretty in your hair, Hana. Take good care of them, for me. Those hairpins were a gift to me, and served me well. Now they shall do the same for you."

"Hana! It's time to head home, sweetheart," came a familiar female voice.

Orihime immediately stood up, making sure the building blocked their view of her. Hana quickly thanked her and promised to take good care of the hairpins before grabbing her ball and running over to Tatsuki, Keigo standing just behind her, locking up the dojo for the night.

Orihime peered over the corner again, watching Tatsuki pick up Hana and tickle her, earning loud giggles. She then saw how Tatsuki brought up a hand to the hairpins in Hana's hair.

"Where did you get these pretty hairpins from, Hana? They look good on you," said Tatsuki.

"A woman who came late for practice gave me them! She said I need to take good care of them, and I will," said Hana happily.

Tatsuki and Keigo shared a look. "Did this woman tell you her name?"

"She said her name was Orihime. She looks like the picture you pray to, mommy."

Orihime took this as her queue to head back to soul society. She opened a senkaimon, her assigned jigokuchō appearing before her to lead her through safely.

* * *

A/N: Soo, yeah. Perhaps I can use this time to give you some insight on my OC, Shiori. Shiori and Uryu met in college, which they both had the same major in fashion design. She is a full blooded quincy, lost her parents when she was 7 in a "car accident" which was really a death caused by the purge Yhwabach or w/e his name is did. She's slightly younger than Uryu, being 30. She possesses an uncanny ability to get Uryu to do things he doesn't like. Also, Uryu is the one who informed her of her true lineage and such, since she grew up with normal humans raising her, close friends of the family and all.

Also Kō's name means happiness which I thought was somewhat ironic given his disposition.

Some info on Karin's zanpakutō, the name Jaaku-shi means Wicked Death. The release command is Isshō (Smile/Laugh), and if she ever achieves bankai the name would be Hontō no shi (True Death).

Perhaps I put way too much thought into this. Ah well, hope you enjoyed! Please R&R. I enjoy feedback, positive or negative.


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